Ironman Canada - 22 (and 21!) weeks out

I’m in catch-up mode so right now I bring you not one, but two, training week recaps on my IMC journey: weeks 22 and 21. And what’s interesting here, from part-way through week 20, is that someone had posted an update in the IMC Facebook group, rallying fellow racers with the sobering announcement: 20 weeks to go! And 20-weeks out from Challenge, I remember thinking “OMG it’s so close!” and yet this time around, it has still felt very far away. Maybe I am building on a better base? Maybe it’s because I started focusing on Challenge 40-weeks from race day so at 20 weeks, it was akin to crossing the halfway mark? Whatever the reason, this time around, it still feels a long way off. And I find that unnerving. In fact as I type this, I’m reminded that I said to the Hub today that his Fondo is 4 short months away, and I was going to break that down and tell him if he factored in tapering and recovery weeks, that’s only a dozen or so long rides… and it occurs to me now that IMC is just a couple of weeks later… Ah so maybe it is not too soon for me to commence with the worry, self doubt and panic!

So training recap…

	IMC: 22 weeks to go (Feb 23-March 1)	Challenge: 22 weeks to go (Mar 17-23)
Total training (and racing!) hours	8:13	15:34
Swim	1:48 / 3800m	2:06 / 4200m
Bike		3:10 (spin class + trainer time)
Run	6:25 / 63.6 km	8:18 / 75.8 km
Strength training		2:00
Yoga
SBR Total	8:13	13:34

This week was all about the marathon… a couple of swims, some short runs, including one in California the morning before the race, and then the main event. You can read about it here.

Here are the deets:

Monday	1800m swim before bed (And I struggled through every bit of it.)
Tuesday	8.5 km run
Wednesday	2000m swim before work
Thursday	6.2 km run
Friday	Rest & travel day
Saturday	6.3 km California run
Sunday	Napa Valley Marathon

... And then...

	IMC: 21 weeks to go (Mar 2-8)	Challenge: 21 weeks to go (Mar 24-30)
Total training hours	9:41	17:58
Swim	1:56 / 3450m	2:55 / 6150m
Bike	7:01 / 141.6 km	6:35 (spin class + trainer time)
Run	0:44 / ~7 km (Garmin malfunction)	5:23 / 50.8 km
Strength training		1:35
Yoga		1:30
SBR Total	9:41	14:53

The following week continued to be all about the marathon, or more specifically, recovering from it. Coach gave me 3 rest days in a row. I’d warned him that I intended to do some easy riding checking out the wineries post-marathon – thinking of a short cruiser/hybrid ride. But that’s not really my style is it?

Instead, the Hub and I rented a couple of road bikes at the CalistogaBikeshop and headed out for a great day of riding in the sunshine, taking in some beautiful sights. The guys at the bike shop were great: got us outfitted quickly, reminded us to pack some fuel, and recommended a route. While the 86km ride with a 10 km climb might not have been an ideal post-marathon recovery activity, it was a fantastic ride and I regret nothing! ...OK, I maybe regret not bringing my own bike shoes and pedals and ...some warmer clothes as it was chilly in the shade and on the descents... and more than one Clif bar.

And speaking of the Clif bar people... they have a Napa winery. That's right, they do. In a funky little shop with cycling memorabilia and friendly staff that will indulge you in all the triathlon, cycling, and running conversation you care to engage in. We visited this place the day after the marathon. Good times.

This is how marathon recovery week looked:

Monday	Nothing but some winery visits & tastings!
Tuesday	86 km California ride!
Wednesday	Rest & travel day
Thursday	1 hour easy spin on trainer after work (House of Cards!)
Friday	2000m swim before work
Saturday	1450m PRM swim 7 km run post-swim
Sunday	41.9 km easy ride in the sunshine

Seriously... how could we leave here without doing a ride like this?

Ironman Canada - 23 weeks out

	IMC: 23 weeks to go (Feb 16-22)	Challenge: 23 weeks to go (Mar 10-16)
Total training hours	9:12	15:21
Swim	3:05 / 6400m	2:55 / 5900m
Bike	1:05 (spin class)	7:45 (trainer + 60.5 km outside)
Run	3:02 / 28.9 km	2:21 / 25.2 km
Strength training		1:20
Yoga	2:00	1:00
SBR Total	7:12	13:01

So this week marked the first week of the taper. Two rest days on the schedule and you know what I did? I spun that into 3. Yes, I did so. Tuesday was track day and despite the fact that I loathe loooove track sessions, I skipped it. Did I need the extra day of rest or just want the extra day? We’ll never know. But I didn’t want to run at the track. And I didn’t want to do an easy run in the ‘hood either, despite the fact that it was a beautiful day. So I didn’t. The next day, feeling well rested and schmucky, I e-mailed Coach to ask if I could make up the track session. We had a little chat but the bottom line was no. Later he shared this photo on Facebook. Yup, I get it.

Wednesday night was Spin and if I’d had any lingering regrets about bailing on the track session, they quickly evaporated when Michelle treated us to a MAP workout. Yeah, had to stop drinking my water during the recovery spins because I was worried I was going to throw up on the hard efforts. Good times.

On my Friday morning swim, I had the good fortune to enjoy a lane to myself for the duration of my swim. Happy day. I focused on finishing my stroke, which I’d gotten chatter about from a couple of directions on the previous week’s Club swim. I think I did a good job of following through because by the end of the work day, my arms ached so badly, I could barely lift them. Swimming properly is hard work! And no, I wasn’t any faster as a result. Saturday morning’s Club swim was a bunch of hard effort stuff – and instructions to finish my stroke. Frack. My arms. My arms.

The complete and total absence of strength work… that’s a problem. I really need to set some intention there – but after I get back from Napa because jumping back into strength work is just not worth the injury risk so close to race day… maybe a little core work this week, but that’s it.

Comparing the two weeks, I got excited initially thinking I must be getting faster with my swim if 10 minutes of extra swim time translated to 500 extra metres in the pool… and then I got to the run line. [sigh]

This is how taper week one went:

Monday	Not a damn thing.
Tuesday	Yup, still nothing.
Wednesday	2300m swim before work PRM Spin Class
Thursday	Hatha Flow Yoga Class
Friday	2200m swim before work 8.5 km run after work
Saturday	1900m PRM swim 8.4 km run Hatha Flow Yoga Class
Sunday	12 km run